


Flint and Steel

by Patricia_Sage



Series: Dragon Dads [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Ambassador Sokka (Avatar), Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Badass Sokka (Avatar), Badass Zuko (Avatar), Bisexual Sokka (Avatar), Bisexual Zuko (Avatar), Established Relationship, Fire, Fire Lord Zuko (Avatar), Firebending & Firebenders, Future Fic, Gay Zuko (Avatar), Hurt, Hurt Sokka (Avatar), Hurt/Comfort, Iroh (Avatar) is a Good Uncle, M/M, Marriage, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Protective Zuko (Avatar), Protectiveness, Revenge, The Jasmine Dragon (Avatar), Vacation, Violence, Whump, zukka - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:14:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25416013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Patricia_Sage/pseuds/Patricia_Sage
Summary: The bald man grabbed Sokka by the throat, but his grip went slack when he heard shouts of alarm from his companions. Sokka began to laugh.Fire Lord Zuko stood in the center of the road, eyes blazing almost as bright as his fists. A red dragon stood shoulder height to him, tail swishing and teeth bared. They looked like two iterations of a dangerous spirit, blessed by the sunset behind them. Smoke escaped both of their noses. When Zuko spoke, his harsh words were accompanied by a lick of flame.“Take your fucking hands off my husband.”
Relationships: Druk & Iroh (Avatar), Druk & Sokka (Avatar), Druk & Zuko (Avatar), Iroh & Sokka (Avatar), Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Dragon Dads [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1841899
Comments: 59
Kudos: 2056





	Flint and Steel

Sokka was an expert fighter, but there was only so much one man could do against an ambush of a dozen armed opponents. One of his eyes was swollen closed, but the other watched his space sword being placed in the back of the thieves’ caravan. It had taken so long for him and Toph to find and there was no way he was going to lose it again.

“You’re making a big mistake, folks,” Sokka warned, testing the strength of the rope that tied his wrists. His back was bruised where it pressed against the tree trunk.

The leader of the group watched a woman empty out Sokka’s change purse. A large pile of coins filled her gloved palm. The leader chuckled. “I don’t think we are.” He approached Sokka and leaned down, sneering. He had a large scar that ran from his bottom lip to somewhere under his chin. His head was shaved and Sokka noted a large tattoo curving over his right ear. “Where does an oaf like you get so much money, huh?”

Sokka smirked. “Friends in high places.”

“Oh, yeah?” The man grabbed Sokka’s jaw, his dirty fingers digging into the warrior’s beard. “What were you doing in Ba Sing Se?”

“Grabbing a cup of tea.”

The thief slapped him across the face, although it didn’t have a lot of force behind it. Still, it made Sokka’s split lip start to bleed again. “Don’t sass me, big guy.” His brown eyes narrowed as he inspected Sokka’s clothing made of blue satin and soft furs. “Friends in high places, eh? Maybe we take you with us, see about a ransom.”

Sokka blew a piece of hair out of his eyes, then grinned. “I don’t think you’ll get that far.”

“What the fuck does that mean?” The bald man grabbed Sokka by the throat, but his grip went slack when he heard shouts of alarm from his companions. Sokka began to laugh.

Fire Lord Zuko stood in the center of the road, eyes blazing almost as bright as his fists. A red dragon stood shoulder height to him, tail swishing and teeth bared. They looked like two iterations of a dangerous spirit, blessed by the sunset behind them. Smoke escaped both of their noses. When Zuko spoke, his harsh words were accompanied by a lick of flame.

“Take your fucking hands off my husband.”

The man’s grip disappeared as if Sokka’s skin had burned him. His voice was strangled when he spoke. “Fire Lord Zuko?” He looked back at Sokka, who was shaking with laughter. “Your husb– _Shit_.”

Zuko approached at a steady pace. His long, dark hair whipped around his face when Druk took flight. The caravan was no more than kindle in the dragon’s eager eyes. Thieves scattered into the trees, but their leader was rooted to the spot. He drew his sword.

Zuko sneered at the blade briefly before settling a gentle focus on Sokka. “They hurt you.”

“I’m okay,” Sokka replied, shrugging.

The thief seemed inspired by this interaction. He swung his blade away from the Fire Lord until the tip touched the side of Sokka’s neck. “D-don’t move.” It was almost amusing to see this man cower at someone more than a foot shorter than him. “If you try to hurt me, I’ll kill him.”

Zuko looked at the man once more, his golden eyes simmering like embers. If the Fire Lord had been wearing something more formal than his traveling robes, his sleeves would be on fire. The thief’s hands began to shake.

“You’ll never touch him again,” Zuko growled.

The thief’s voice was shrill in panic. “Don’t move!”

Zuko simply tilted his head. The bald man didn’t see Druk coming until it was too late. His sword clattered to the ground by Sokka’s legs as the dragon’s claws dug into broad shoulders. The thief was lifted off of the ground, screaming, but neither man even bothered to watch.

Zuko swiftly burned through the ropes, monitoring the flame so it didn’t touch his husband’s skin. As soon as he was free, Sokka stood and wrapped his arms around Zuko’s waist. He buried his nose in Zuko’s dark hair. Zuko’s hands were shaking and his palms were warm against Sokka’s shoulders.

Sokka pulled back just enough to make their foreheads touch. “You’re so hot,” he said, “And I don’t just mean the firebending.”

Zuko made more space between them, scowling, but his eyes were glistening. He placed his hands on Sokka’s cheeks, being very careful near the bruises. “Why can’t we just take a vacation, Sokka? Why can’t I visit with Uncle for five minutes without worrying about shit like this?”

Sokka tilted his head to place a kiss on his husband’s palm, directly over the scar where Azula’s lightning had exited his body five years ago. “I think the universe is trying to balance us out. We’ve got the coolest friends, the happiest marriage, and the best dragon son two guys could ask for. I guess I have to get beat up sometimes to make up for that.”

“No!” Zuko snapped, “I won’t stand for it.”

Sokka smiled. “I know.”

Druk interrupted what would have been a very gentle, metallic-tasting kiss by shoving his scaly nose in between their chests. Sokka scratched him under the chin and redirected his kiss to the top of Druk’s head. “What a good boy, saving Papa’s life.”

“He’s a very good boy. He’s the best boy.” This would have been a cute sentiment if Zuko wasn’t still a bit fired up, making his words come out harsh and emphatic. Sokka laughed. “Now, let’s go. Uncle can patch you up.”

“Iroh’s always complaining we don’t stay very long when we visit,” Sokka said. He walked over to the pile of smoldering ashes that used to be the caravan and triumphantly salvaged his space sword.

“I don’t think this is exactly what he wanted.”

“No,” Sokka agreed. “But the Jasmine Dragon is a hell of a lot more fun when there’s an actual dragon in it.”

Zuko replied, affronted, “He’s not used to confined spaces!”

Iroh looked alarmed but not surprised when they walked into the tea shop a short walk later. “My boys, always getting into trouble,” he muttered as he retrieved his medical kit from under the counter.

Druk knocked over a table.

**Author's Note:**

> Is there a limit to the amount of fire imagery I can put in describing Zuko? Apparently not. 
> 
> This was very indulgent but I really enjoyed writing it and I hope you enjoyed reading it. I really love hearing thoughts on my writing, so don't be shy to leave a comment!


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